Chicago Close - Wednesday

Posted by Nogger - a legend in his own mind at 08:43 | Categorized as

13/06/12 -- Soybeans: Jul 12 Soybeans closed at USD14.08 1/4, down 26 3/4 cents; Nov 12 Soybeans closed at USD13.19 3/4, down 17 1/4 cents; Jul 12 Soybean Meal closed at USD422.00, down USD11.00; Jul 12 Soybean Oil closed at 49.10, down 62 points. Funds were said to have sold 6,000 soybean contracts on the day in nervousness ahead of the Greek elections at the weekend, taking profits on some of their long position. Rising Italian and Spanish borrowing costs also indicate the the European debt crisis is still very much with us despite last weekend's Spanish bank bailout. US weather forecasts are looking more promising in both the 5-day and 6-10 day period, and there is still time for soybeans to make a very good crop if summer weather plays ball. Estimates for tomorrow's weekly export sales report for soybeans are 500-750 TMT.

Corn: Jul 12 Corn closed at USD5.92 1/2, up 8 1/2 cents; Dec 12 Corn closed at USD5.10 1/2, down 12 cents. Old crop gained whilst new crop fell. A very tight old crop physical supply-line supported the nearby Jul 12 contract. Further forward increased chances of good rains across three of the top four US corn states of Iowa, Nebraska and Minnesota had new crop under pressure. The Eastern Corn Belt still looks dry though. There will also be increased competition from Brazil and Ukraine on the export front in the latter half of 2012 and into 2013 which will see US ending stocks more than double next season. Estimates for tomorrow's weekly export sales report are 400-600 TMT.

Wheat: Jul 12 CBOT Wheat closed unchanged at USD6.16; Jul 12 KCBT Wheat closed at USD6.40 1/2, down 1/4 cent; Jul 12 MGEX Wheat closed at USD7.73 1/2, up 9 1/4 cents. ABARES forecast for a Australian wheat crop of 24.1 MMT was friendly, it's almost 2 MMT below the USDA's Tuesday estimate and may also impinge on their export hopes for 2012/13 - the USDA currently has them as the second largest exporter in the world in the season ahead. Even so they still have plenty of wheat left over from the previous harvest. Despite a strong export programme the IGC estimated Australia’s Sept ending stocks at 9.4 MMT - similar to a year ago. Estimates for tomorrow's weekly export sales report are 250-350 TMT.